It’s not just Vassell’s impact on the offensive side of the court that is worth noting.
SAN ANTONIO — San Antonio Spurs‘ Devin Vassell’s recent offensive play is eye-opening, scoring 20-plus points in three consecutive games and double-figures in 14-straight games, including a 37-point explosion versus Brooklyn on March 4.
His offensive output has helped the Spurs win four of their last six games, but the team and coaching staff have challenged him to raise his defensive level.
“I feel like I’ve been challenged a lot, whether it’s been my coaches or my teammates, they’ve been challenging me a lot, especially the second half of the season,” said Vassell following the team’s 123-89 road win over Toronto.
With Victor Wembanyama (blood clots) and De’Aaron Fox (finger surgery) out for the remainder of the season, Vassell has been shouldering the load on both ends of the floor. Still, his defensive impact has been felt over the last few games.
His defensive numbers have spiked during his hot month of March.
He recorded three steals against the Nets, three steals versus the 76ers on March 21, and four blocks versus the Knicks at home on March 19.
“I took that challenge for sure,” he said. “Whether it’s getting steals, whether it’s getting blocks or just being in the right position.”
Looking at his last five outings, his steals per game average is up to 1.6, blocks per game are now at 1.2, and rebounds per game are up to 5.6. In addition, he is averaging 3.0 deflections per game this month overall.
“Sometimes it’s just not on the stat sheet, but if you’re in the right position, you might cause a pass, or you might cause them not to throw a certain pass, and now it’s late in the shot clock, and now it’s a turnover,” he said.
Said Vassell: “Just being ultra disruptive has been kind of the biggest thing that I’ve been trying to do.”
It’s not just this recent stretch of games that the Spurs forward flexed his defensive muscle.
He has a defensive rating of 117.4 this season through 56 games played, which is currently the third-best in his career.
And as a sign of basketball maturity, Vassell knows that his offense may not be firing on all cylinders game in and out during the grind of an NBA season.
However, he understands that making that defensive impact when the offense is sputtering will help the team pick up wins.
“Every night, you’re not going to have it (offense). So defensively, if you can be that presence, you’re going to help your team win.”